Woman in labor stops to vote on her way to the hospital

Who won Election Day? This new mom. In this photo provided by the Cook County Clerk, Galicia Malone pauses outside New Life Celebration Church in Dolton, Ill., where she cast her vote while in full-blown labor before heading to the hospital.

Talk about getting out the labor vote.

One determined Chicago woman voted this morning – even though she was in full-blown labor, with contractions five minutes apart.

After casting her ballot, she drove herself to the hospital.

Galicia Malone's contractions began at 3 a.m. on Election Day, she told WBBM Newsradio in Chicago. At 21, this is the first presidential election in which Malone is eligible to vote, so she held out until polls opened.

"I never voted before, so this made a major difference in my life. I wanted it to be a stepping stone for my daughter," she told WBBM. The office of Cook County Clerk David Orr told NBC her water had already broken when she showed up at her polling place, the aptly named New Life Celebration Church.

"If only all voters showed such determination to vote," Orr said. "My hat goes off to Galicia for not letting anything get in the way of voting. What a terrific example she is showing for the next generation, especially her new son or daughter."

She worked her way through the ballot while also working through several contractions. She told WBBM:

"You know what, I was just trying to read and breathe, read and breathe. That's what I kept telling myself as I sat there, read and breathe."